AMD Athlon 64 X2 4600+ / 2.4 GHz processor

Author's product rating:   

Speed	Very fast
Ease of Installation	Satisfactory
Manufacturer Support	Good
Instruction manual	Good
Value For Money	Excellent

Advantages:	Fast, afordable for budget PC's
Disadvantages:	None really

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Now that Windows Vista is upon us, and the horror stories multiply over the internet, when everyone is thinking if they should sell their right or left kidney or sell their souls to the Devil, so they can run the latest and greatest Microsoft OS, let me tell you of upgrade on a budget.

So, you have an old system (please note that the definition of old in electronics is the time-space continuous of about 5 minutes after something comes out of the shop where you just bought the it ....) and you are looking for a cheap up grade in order to save some money in more important things (mothers day soon enough, that stereo for the car that you have been drooling over for same time now, the long promised holiday to your partner...) , this may be the upgrade for you

Now, this CPU (central processing unit), it's a 939 socket base
(the definition of sockets can and should always be checked either on the shop where you get your hardware, or at the website from your e-tailer)

As the title indicates, it's actually 1 processor, but with 2 cores
My actual model it's the denominated Manchester

It has a data cache of 64 bytes x 2 on L1, 64 bytes x 2 on L1 instruction cache, 512 bytes x 2 on L2 cache.
Core speed 2400 Mhz

So, what exactly does this mean on practical terms?
It means that is fast and cheap. It is the same thing than having 2 old Athlon 3800+ on you PC working at the same time.

But first things first. As I stated, if you already have an old 939 motherboard, and don't want to go broke on upgrading pretty much all of your system (motherboard,Ram and processor), it's a few easy steps you can take

1] Confirm that indeed you have a 939 socket (this should be easy to check via your system manual) or if not, CPUZ (http://www.cpuid.com/cpuz.php) can help you out

2] Check for bios up dates via your motherboard provider (Asus,MSI, etc) all provide downloads and a "How not to blow up your PC whilst updating your bios for Dummies" guides

You can actually download and install the new bios even if your old AMD processor is still a single core one

After all the above is done, lets get on with the dirty work :)

The package is not exactly Marilyn Monroe, but the manuals and easy of understanding are most definitely Judy Dench-a non nonsense instructions that does exactly what it's designed for. On the retail version, a cooling fan is provided with the package

It took me about 30 minutes from the time of stripping the PC cover off, remove the old processor, clean up the case, and installing the new processor in.

Now, just before I installed the processor, what I personally do, it's to put some thermal paste compound on the top of the heat spreader (that's the top of the CPU, the shinning part), and also on the bottom of the processor fan

Follow the instruction closely, and make sure that you are putting all the pins in the right direction. It is easy to make a mistake, and you can ruin a perfectly good processor

Be careful when putting the fan. Some force is needed, but not the same effort as if you where hammering nails in your walls
Don't forget to connect the fan to the motherboard. Bad things may happen if you don't. And no, smell of burned out electronic devices does not go away that quick....

I also advise to clear your CMOS data before and after you install the processor.

Boot the PC. You can go on bios to check out if all OK

The first thing you notice is that Windows loads up faster
Once in, I strongly advise to download the drivers for dual core processors from the AMD site http://www.amd.com/gb-uk/Processors/TechnicalResources/0,,30_182_871_13118, 00.html

Follow up the instructions. Once all is installed, go onto Control Panel. On Devices, it should appear 2 processors. If this is the case, you are ready for lift off

You will notice that your more CPU dependent applications will start responding faster. There is also the extra help when watching films on your PC. Less stutter. Browsing the net becomes less sluggish, specially if you have to have a lot of browser windows open. Word and other applications become more responsible. Defragmenting runs faster...

Yes, it's a new breath of life. Even those games that where giving you hassle seem to smoother...but then again, we can only play minesweeper at so many frames per second....:)

Overclocking: As stated before, the core clock of the processor is 2400 Mhz, at 12 multiplier. I have mine running at 2760 Mhz (thats a multiplier of 12 x 228 bus speed) on air, without even changing the voltage. Not bad

In short: If you want a cheap upgrade, this is it. Can't really go wrong

PS: I'm currently running Windows Vista Ultimate 32 bit. I had 0 problems with Vista and this CPU. My only real quirk is the lack of driver support from AMD, excepting the one that came pre installed with Vista. Something for AMD to look at in the future.